Method of erecting concrete structures



Oct. 7, 1952 w. E. wREAD METHOD OF' ERECTING CONCRETE STRUCTURES `2SHEETS--SHEET l Filed Dec. 27, 1948 I INVENToR. MLA/AME'. PWQEAD,

BY Oft/M +14 rroe/VEY.

` Oct. 7, 1952 w. E. wREAD 2,612,675

METHOD OF' ERECTING CONCRETE STRUCTURES Filed D80. 27, 1948 2SHEETS-SHEET 2 n Patented Oct. 7, 1952 METHOD oFfEREC'rI-NG GoNcRfrz'rnvl 'STRUCTURES William E. Wread, Los Angeles,:Calif. l Application`December 27, IMS, Serial No. vr67,282

My `inventionl relates to the .art of building concrete structures and.particularly :to thebuilding of concrete :structures reinforced ywith.structural steel rods and `other elements.

Such lreinforced concrete structures are vvery widenuse fbeoause. of thegreat variety .of forms which may be constructed wholly or in part ofthis material, but .hashitherto been subject to the disadvantage that a:large Wastage of lumber was'involved in their construction.

In erecting buildings, bridges, culverts or pipes,

.2 Claims. (GL 25-:154

-:Still :another :object .of my. invention is to provide .improvedmethods of erecting concrete structures such as Walls, oors and tubular.structures withrapidity and accuracy.

'Yet .another .object .of my invention is to provide :a novel method of.constructing forms for concrete construction without the use of nailsby :the use of which method any lumber or other .or other structures,orms'made from Wood are.

rst shaped and arranged :to -dei'lneinner :and outer surfaces of Walls,arches and the like,yrein forcing steel rods and .other elements beingput 'in rplace in the form.v and the' .concrete ythen poured into the'form and allowed to set after which the forms are removed andreusedioranother portion of the `structure or if there was no further 'use `for`them were scrapped, since very iew'identical structures .are lerected,especially within a short period which would justify the expenseoffstoring the formsz'or further use.

I t is the particular lpurpose of my invention tov l reduce to aminimumzthe Wastage tof lumber inv cidental to the erection ofreinforced concrete buildings by the provision :of ydemountable Woodenforms'iitted with.: metal clamping members.

.An important object of my invention is to provide a novel method usingwooden forms in form-L ing concrete structures .and `which forms may bey* wholly or vin part reused .indenitely, .any parts necessarilydestroyed in .one use being readily vreplaced for a further .use .of theforms.

A further ,object of my invention is to provide Va novel method for`rapidly and accurately erecting'wooden forms by the use :of a pluralityof steel spacing elements utilized to locate Vthe reinforcing rods inthe forms, the forms being freed from the .spacer elements after theconcrete has set` and dismantled for further use While 'the spacerelements are .left yembedded inthe ccm-` crete.

It is a still further object of my invention to provide a novel methodfor producing tubular vstructures of reinforced concrete -such vas stormdrains, culverts vand. .the like including boards held in position toprovide inner and outer'forms held by vinner removable rings and outerremovable straps against a hooplike `spacing vmember left embedded intheconcrete and permanently secured, to a longitudinally extending base,While the inner and outer form boards and straps may be dismantledforreuse.

:surface-.defining elementsand metal members :used to hold the forms inassembled "position, are nottnarred '.orin. :anyway injured by repeateduse.

Another object of-my invention is to provide la Anovel method ofbuildingconcrete structures of extendedV length, :such .as pipes andconduits, by

Whichthealignment :oftheconduit along its pre-4 determined c'ourse,Whether straight or not, is greatlyfacilitated.

A still further object .of .my invention 1s to provide a novel method.of constructing forms for use in `building reinforced concretestructures by which the reinforcing steel rods are positively `held inposition 'Without the .necessity of Wiring the rods in position, thusgreatly reducing the time of :setting up the forms and reinforcementpreparatory to pouring the concrete, as compared to the procedures inuse hitherto.

Another-'object of my invention is to provide a novel method Aofconstructing reinforced concrete' structures :by which the time oferection of v"the .structure is :reduced together With the cost ofmaterial used in the forms and the necessity of employing expensivelabor in the placing and securing in position .of the reinforcement rodsis avoided.

Other objects, advantages and features of invention may appear from theaccompanying drawing; the .subjoined detail description, and thelappended claims.

The accompanying drawings illustrate the invention in the form I atpresent deem preferable.

Fig. l'is va sidevelevation in Which forms in carrying .outmy inventionare arranged to produce drains kandthe like.

Fig, 2 is a .cross-section on the line 2-2 of Fig.. 1.

Fig. 3 is a cross-.section on the line 3 3 of Fig. .2.

Fig. 4 is a detail view of an outside removable member :shown 4in Figs.l and 2 in assembled relation. 'I

lFigfdisa detail view of .an inside removable member. shown in Fig. 2 inassembled relation.

Fig. 6 is a detail view 0f a skeleton ring member left embedded in thestructures shown in Figs. 1 and 2.

Fig. 'I is a section through a modified form construction used forconstructing culvertsl and the I ,like and particularly applicable'tothe construction of relatively small diameter structures.

Fig. 8 is a Vdetail view in elevation of a structural reinforcementmemberutilizedin vthe construction shown infFig. 7 and left embedded inthe structure. l

Fig. 9 is a fragmentary detail in section showother abutment. Atightening' member 98 having 1'0" ing one way of forming an .expansionjoint in a length of conduit utilizing elements of myvnovel formconstruction.

The reusable forms of my invention are characterized by the use ofplanks or boards conmembers, some of which may be left in a conipletedportion of the structure but which may be readily replaced by newV andinexpensive parts in order to put the form in condition for .use informing a further portion of the same or another structure.

In. Figs. l through 6 Iillustrate the application of the forms of4 myinvention to the production longitudinally'extending sub-base B servingas a permanent anchorage for the hoop members left embedded intheconcrete.

' nected together and also spaced by iron orvsteel crete is poured. Theinner wall 92 of the form is lbuilt up between an expansible ring'S andinner member 84 of hoop spacer H. Ring 94 is formed as a metal strapbent into a hoop, abutl ments 98a, 96D being welded to the ends of thestrip. Holes are drilled longitudinally in the abutments and'threadedwith a left hand thread in one abutment and a right hand thread in thevabody 98a drilled for operation by a tommy bar, is provided withoppositely extending stems threaded one with a right and the other witha left hand thread engaging with the threaded bores inthe abutments, thearrangement being s uch that when body 98a is turned in one directionthe ends of the hoopv are drawn togetherand its diameter decreased whilewhen the bod d8a is turned in the opposite direction the diame ter ofthe hoop is increased and the boards 92 are clamped firmly against innermember 84 of hoop spacer H. If additional force is required to hold theinner and outer forms against the spacing Sii -. Ycross, section.

The sub-base B is poured in the ordinary manner to provide a thick slabreinforced with-longitudinal rods 18 and short vertical rods 8dprojecting upwardly therefrom and with later-ally projecting .spacedbolts 82, thebolts preferably being provided with' anchor plates 82a.When a length of the sub-.base B has sufficiently set .hoop members 'Hare placed in position. Mem- '.bers H are built up from an innercontinuous hoop 84 of` strip material and an outer member '86 with itsends formed as downwardly projecting securing lugsBa provided withopenings therein. The members 3B and 86 are spaced-` apart by spacerswhich may be formed asav pluo rality of circumferentially spaced plates81 welded to the members Stand 85. The hoop members H are secured invertical position at spaced intervals by passing the holes in ears 86aover the projecting ends of bolts 82, then positioning the bottom lengthof an outside form built up of lengths of board or plank 86h and thensecuring y an outer hoop member 83 by apertured lugs 88a on the ends ofbolts 82 and finally clamping the assembly together by nuts 82a.

The hoop members may be `held in spaced parallelV planes by longitudinalreinforcing steel rods 9i which may be spot welded to spacer plates Sior otherwise secured thereto and circumferential reinforcing rods Slamay be then put in place. Rods Sid are bent to circular shape with theirends bent outwardly so as to be embedded in the upper layer of base Bwhen the cement is poured. i Y

The outer hoop is, of course, concentric with the outer memberof hoopHand the planks 86h forming the outer wall of the form are positionedtherebetween. A gap 9B is left extendinglongitudinally along the topthrough which the con-` course, plugged up.

When building the tubular structure in suc member I-I, radially arrangedbolts .|00 maybe used. The bolts 108 are fitted inv holes drilledthrough. the above described members ofthe form structure after the formhas been assembled,

and the nuts Itla tightened up to securelyv hold Ythe form memberstogether. .After the concrete `has suiiiciently set.' the` nuts |0011are removed and the bolts knocked out. To aid in removing the bolts theymay be' givenk a slightly tapered After removal of the forms the holesleft by the bolts inthe cessive lengths the openend of the moldwill-,fof course, be closed'by temporary shuttering lofany .suitableform.

In Fig. '7l a form construction is shown which is particularly designedto the formation of tubu- A lar structures of small diameter,forfinstance, of

about one foot, which could not be formed with the expanding ringconstruction vshown in Figfz in reasonable lengths for each pouringofthe cement since it would be impossible to reach an operate theexpanding rings.

In place of removable inner tensioning hoops vand removable planks Iutilize precast pipes 289 to denne the inner wall of the reinforcedconduit but utilize preformed reinforcing members HB to reinforce theconduit. Each member HB comprises an inner ring.l84 and an outerfhoop I85 spaced in concentric or other relation by spacers'v i8? which may bewelded in place between the inner and outer members.

The outer hoop member is provided with'delpending apertured lugs spacedapart by a strut E99 to hold the lugs spaced apart a predetermineddistance.

A supporting and locating concrete base is rst laid along the line onwhich the structure is to be built, the width of they basebeing suchthat the vlugs fit snugly over it. Bolts 18E! with their heads embeddedin the concrete base with their. threaded ends projecting upwardlytherefrom, and holes are kformed in strut 199 fitting over the bolts andthe hoop reinforcing members are secured in place by nuts threaded onthe bolts and tightened, up against the struts- 99. Other straps,similar in arrangement to hoop 88 in Fig. 2, are then threaded on studs,182 projecting from the sides of the base and passing through the lugsofV hoop 86. vThe hoops are spaced by the bottomboards ,ofthe outerforno laid between ythe lugs and the: proconcrete are, of

jecting ends of the straps and when nuts |8A2a are tightened up, stableguides will be formed between which the boards deiining the outersurface of the form may be slipped. After concrete has been poured andset, the outer straps and boards may be readily removed for re-use. Y

It will be noted that the construction `described for forming conduitsprovides a self-aligning structure once the base has been laid since thepreformed reinforcing members and form members accurately assume theirproper positions without the need for elaborate lining up as is usualpractice. It is, of course, not necessary that the base should follow astraight line either horizontally or vertically since the form boardsmay be butted together at an angle in consecutive lengths of conduit andwill still provide a satisfactory support or form for the concrete.Considerable local variation in the level ofthe conduit base and thelevel of the conduit is permitted by packing up the hoop member from thebase and then tightening up the nuts |80a, when concrete is poured theconcrete will form additional thickness of base at such low points. Theusual practice of carefully levelling the ground preparatory to layingconduit is greatly simplified by my method of construction.

I may wish to provide expansion joints Where extended lengths of conduitis laid above ground in areas such as deserts in which an extreme rangeof temperature is encountered. While various forms of joint may beutilized, the construction -shown in Fig. 9 incorporates advantageouslythe elements illustrated in Figs. '1

through 6. A bell mouth |02 is formed yby the use of a member |04 oflarger diameter than,

ybut of similar construction to member H. `To

member |04 is secured a stamped annular metal packing piece |05 whichextends across the edge of the bell and provides a tapered packingretainer holding water tight packing |06. The packing is put underpressure by a follower ring tightened by bolts |01 embedded in the edgeof the bell and passing through holes in the follower ring and nutsthreaded on said bolts bearing against said ring.

It will be evident that the forms or shuttering of my invention may beerected, concrete poured and set, the forms removed and with new spacersmay be re-used indefinitely so that culverts and the like may be builtsection by section with a minimum wastage of parts and with no loss inlhoop-like spacers along said base and securing,l

the same to said retaining members;v securing longitudinal andcircumferential reinforcing rods in position relatively to said spacers;placing external retaining bands around but spaced from f said spacersand securing the same to the rea taining members, positioning outsideplanking between said retaining bands and hoop-like spacers; positioningexpansible inside hoop members within said hoop-like spacers,positioning inside planking betweenv the expansible hoops and hoop-likespacers, then iilling the space between said outer and inner plankngwith concrete and then removing the planking, external `bands andexpansible hoops for re-use, leaving the hoop-like spacers embedded inthe concrete ments to said base, arranging reinforcing elementslongitudinally between the inner and outer elements of the hoop-likemembers and at spaced intervals therearound, fitting outer straps aroundbut spaced from the outer members of the hoop-like elements andtemporarily attaching the ends of said straps to the sides of the base,positioning outer form boards between said straps and hoop-like members,placing extensible diameter rings in contracted condition within andspaced from the inner members of the hoop-like elements; positioningboards in contact with one another between said expansible rings and thehoop-like member to form an inner form face and expanding said rings tofirmly hold the boards in position, then .pouring concrete between thesaid inner and outer form boards, and then removing said straps,contracting and removing said expansible rings and the n outer and innerform boards for re-use.

WILLIAM E. WREAD.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the NumberName Date 723,307 Reno Mar. 24, 1903 745,585 Ferguson Dec. 1, 1903953,722 Taylor Apr. 5, 1910 1,043,193 Beery Nov. 5,r 1912 1,236,795Watson Aug. 14, 1917 1,237,999 Burnett Aug. 21, 1917 1,554,658 RiceSept. 22, 1925 1,779,908 Graziano Oct. 28, 1930 1,788,200 Molin et al.`Jan. 6,1931 1,843,334 McGrath Feb. 2, 1932 1,910,594 De La Mare May 23,1933 2,251,775 Arrighini Aug. `5, 1941 2,313,880 Leggett, S1'. Mar. 16,1943 2,387,445 Herring Oct. 23, 1945

